Yankees’ Senior Vice President and General Manager Brian Cashman shared stories of struggles and strides at Tuesday’s Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting at Crowne Plaza in Cromwell.

But 2011 seems to be a turning point. The Yankees are no longer the favorite and don’t pull down the highest salaries in baseball – qualities that reflect Yankee rivals, the Boston Red Sox.

“We’re not conceding anything,” said Cashman. “We know the Red Sox are picked to win, but we’ve been in that position before, too.”

Now that Steinbrunner, known as, “The Boss,” has died, he is not forgotten in the Yankee franchise or in Cashman’s eyes.

“The legacy George left is he created a bunch of other Georges,” Cashman said. “The man was so dedicated to winning. [George’s] family is dedicated to winning. Everything I am is because of The Boss.”

The biggest blow to the Yankees’ pitching would be Andy Pettitte, retiring after a great 2010 season.

“Andy has talking about being home for years,” said Cashman. “Being from Texas and having to be in New York for six months out of the year can be hard because he has kids and he’s missing important time with them. He’s opting not to play right now but that might change it might not. I told him don’t ‘Brett Favre’ us. You got to be all in and fully dedicated to play. Do I need him? I need him, but I don’t want him to play if his heart’s not in it.”

To prepare for 2011 with hopes of making the playoffs for the 11th time in his career, Cashman developed a mental training program as part of spring training.

“They are learning things like being a good teammate,” said Cashman. “We bring in navy seals to talk to our guys. We want to make sure that the guys know that the guy standing next to them is as all in as they are.”

“My job is all about winning,” said Cashman. “You have to make tough decisions, like when I let Bernie Williams go, Matsui, and Johnny Damon. But when you’re trying to win you can’t think about anything else. You just need to put the best team you can out there.”

The Navy Seal thing is hilarious. Imagine the poor Yankee who lockers next to Damaso Marte. He must be thinking “Crap, that guy has my back? Just shoot me now…”

And, how about that “The legacy George left is he created a bunch of other Georges” crack? That’s a not too veiled shot at the Brothers Stein and Randy Levine on the Soriano contract, eh?

Comments on Cashman To Pettitte: Don’t Yank Our Chain

Steve, speaking of Navy Seals and having the next guys back. What about bringing Pavano back? His negotiations seem to be at an impasse, would you bring him back w/ an incentive laden contract? Again, if the “price was right”….

Steve, speaking of Navy Seals and having the next guys back. What about bringing Pavano back? His negotiations seem to be at an impasse, would you bring him back w/ an incentive laden contract? Again, if the “price was right”….

Cashman quote #1: “My job is all about winning. You have to make tough decisions, like when I let Bernie Williams go, Matsui, and Johnny Damon. But when you’re trying to win you can’t think about anything else. You just need to put the best team you can out there.”

Cashman Quote #2: “This (the Soriano signing) certainly will help us try to win a championship, there’s no doubt about that, so that’s in the plus column. But I didn’t recommend it, just because I didn’t think it was an efficient way to allocate the remaining resources we have. We had a lot of debate about that.”

So which is it? Is it all about winning and putting the best team you can out there or is it about allocating resources?